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http://www.theroot.com/former-oklahoma-state-senator-to-plead-guilty-to-child-1820602894
Former Oklahoma State Senator to Plead Guilty To Child Sex Trafficking Charge: Report
Breanna Edwards
Today 7:49am
71
\This March 16, 2017, file photo, provided by the Cleveland County Sheriff’s Office in Norman, Okla., shows Ralph Shortey, a Republican state senator who is facing felony child prostitution charges after police say he solicited sex from a 17-year-old boy. (Cleveland County Sheriff’s Office via AP, File)
A former Oklahoma state senator is expected to plead guilty to a child sex trafficking charge later this month, for offering to pay a 17-year-old boy for sexual “stuff” earlier this year.
According to NewsOk, Ralph Shortey, a Republican, will plead guilty and in exchange, U.S. prosecutors have agreed to drop three child pornography charges against him.
“It is in my best interest and in the best interest of my family,” Shortey wrote on plea paperwork, the news site notes.
Shortey is scheduled to plead guilty on Nov. 30, and, will be required to serve at least 10-years in prison, which is the mandatory minimum for child sex trafficking.
Shortey could face the maximum punishment, which is life in prison, but according to NewsOk is hoping to avoid a life sentence by making a deal. U.S. District Judge Timothy DeGiusti is expected to make a sentencing decision next year.
Meanwhile, Shortey remains married to his high school sweetheart, according to his defense attorney, with whom he has four daughters.
“Mr. Shortey feels this is a necessary step in putting this painful and humiliating ordeal behind him, for both himself, his family and for the state of Oklahoma,” his defense attorney, Ed Blau who negotiated the plea deal, told the news site.
Shortey, who was first elected in 2012 resigned in March following an investigation which started with the local police before the FBI started probing. He had been found with the teenager at a Super 8 in Moore at around 1 a.m. on March 9.
The teen’s girlfriend has followed them to a hotel after seeing Shortey pick the boy up. The girlfriend then called the teen’s father, who called the police.
From NewsOK:
The investigation of Shortey uncovered evidence he had led a secret life. The FBI reported he used fake names to post Craigslist ads seeking sex with young males and on an email account to send and receive pornography.
“Shortey used those pseudonyms almost exclusively for illicit and illegal sexual interests or encounters, several of which included communications and exchanges of pornography with underage males, and/or the sharing of child pornography,” the FBI agent wrote in the court affidavit.
Read more at NewsOK.
About the author
Breanna Edwards
Breanna Edwards
News Editor at The Root, animation nerd, soca junkie, yogi
TwitterPosts
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Former Oklahoma State Senator to Plead Guilty To Child Sex Trafficking Charge: Report
Breanna Edwards
Today 7:49am
71
\This March 16, 2017, file photo, provided by the Cleveland County Sheriff’s Office in Norman, Okla., shows Ralph Shortey, a Republican state senator who is facing felony child prostitution charges after police say he solicited sex from a 17-year-old boy. (Cleveland County Sheriff’s Office via AP, File)
A former Oklahoma state senator is expected to plead guilty to a child sex trafficking charge later this month, for offering to pay a 17-year-old boy for sexual “stuff” earlier this year.
According to NewsOk, Ralph Shortey, a Republican, will plead guilty and in exchange, U.S. prosecutors have agreed to drop three child pornography charges against him.
“It is in my best interest and in the best interest of my family,” Shortey wrote on plea paperwork, the news site notes.
Shortey is scheduled to plead guilty on Nov. 30, and, will be required to serve at least 10-years in prison, which is the mandatory minimum for child sex trafficking.
Shortey could face the maximum punishment, which is life in prison, but according to NewsOk is hoping to avoid a life sentence by making a deal. U.S. District Judge Timothy DeGiusti is expected to make a sentencing decision next year.
Meanwhile, Shortey remains married to his high school sweetheart, according to his defense attorney, with whom he has four daughters.
“Mr. Shortey feels this is a necessary step in putting this painful and humiliating ordeal behind him, for both himself, his family and for the state of Oklahoma,” his defense attorney, Ed Blau who negotiated the plea deal, told the news site.
Shortey, who was first elected in 2012 resigned in March following an investigation which started with the local police before the FBI started probing. He had been found with the teenager at a Super 8 in Moore at around 1 a.m. on March 9.
The teen’s girlfriend has followed them to a hotel after seeing Shortey pick the boy up. The girlfriend then called the teen’s father, who called the police.
From NewsOK:
The investigation of Shortey uncovered evidence he had led a secret life. The FBI reported he used fake names to post Craigslist ads seeking sex with young males and on an email account to send and receive pornography.
“Shortey used those pseudonyms almost exclusively for illicit and illegal sexual interests or encounters, several of which included communications and exchanges of pornography with underage males, and/or the sharing of child pornography,” the FBI agent wrote in the court affidavit.
Read more at NewsOK.
About the author
Breanna Edwards
News Editor at The Root, animation nerd, soca junkie, yogi
TwitterPosts
The Root
This Can’t Be Good . . . Genealogy Companies Say They’re Willing to Give Law Enforcement Your DNA
Yesterday 1:10pm
The Root
Marines Respond to Video of Jarhead Serving Up a Racial Epithet With a Smile
Yesterday 10:18am
Deadspin
Trump Tweets About Marshawn Lynch Sitting For The Anthem; I Can't Believe We're Still Doing This
Today 8:20am
ShareTweet
